Calliope

Modern Levantine Cooking With Southern Ingredients

Calliope is a modern Levantine restaurant and bar at 422 East Martin Luther King Boulevard in downtown Chattanooga. Chef Khaled Albanna, who grew up in Amman, Jordan, runs a seasonal menu that sources ingredients from across the South and turns them into Mediterranean and Middle Eastern dishes. The restaurant was named a 2026 James Beard Awards semifinalist for Best Chef: Southeast and made The New York Times list of the top 50 restaurants in the U.S. in 2025.

What to Order

The menu is seasonal, so what you see online may change by the time you visit. Calliope's own site points to dishes like the branzino, the crispy Brussels and the house-made hummus. Happy hour comes with special-priced drinks and snacks like the Mezze Platter, served daily.

Calliope also keeps a wine, spirits and beer list, so you can build a full evening around the bar as well as the dinner menu.

The Space and the Neighborhood

The restaurant has an intimate dining room, plus a private dining room that comfortably seats up to 40 guests for rehearsal dinners, corporate dinners and other events. Reservations can be booked on Calliope's website.

Calliope sits on East MLK Boulevard, the same stretch as the Greenhouse taproom of Oddstory Brewing and Hutton & Smith Brewing, so a beer before or after dinner is easy to work in.

Planning Your Visit

Calliope serves dinner Monday through Thursday 5 to 9 PM, Friday and Saturday 4 to 10 PM, and Sunday 4 to 9 PM, with happy hour from 5 to 6 PM on weekdays and 4 to 6 PM on weekends. Check the website for current hours and menus, or call 423-654-7800.

For more of Chattanooga's dining, check out Alleia or Easy Bistro & Bar downtown.